Engineering Change Request Management

Benefits of Change Request Management in Arena

Arena software helps you ensure that valuable feedback never slips through the cracks, but is continually and efficiently leveraged to help improve existing products and design superior ones.

Improved Product Quality

With a better way for engineering to file, track and follow up on product related problems, product quality issues are resolved faster. Whether engineering change requests are suggestions from customers, suppliers, or employees, the end result is better products.

Closed Loop Tracking

Facilitate closed loop tracking from problem identification to change implementation via an integrated request and change management system. Know what engineering change requests are open and what issues keep them from being resolved. Find the changes which have been implemented through the linked trail of ECRs and ECOs.

Regulatory and Quality Standards Compliance

The change request management functionality provides the necessary system infrastructure to implement auditable Corrective Action Requests and Corrective and Preventive Action (CAPA) processes in order to comply with regulations and quality standards.

Standardized Forms and Procedures

Increase consistency and efficiency in your change process by having your teams using the same forms and process workflows every time they submit a request.

Details of Change Request Management in Arena

• Request tracking: Manage unlimited types of change requests (e.g. ECR, DCR, CAR, SCAR) with flexible workflows and evaluator groups. Define categories for easy request identification and to support intelligent numbering.
• Integrated issue management: Capture evaluator issues, comments, and recommendations within the context of the request. Clearly see which issues have been addressed and closed and which are still open for discussion.
• Closed-loop tracking: Associate one or more requests with any engineering change order to provide complete context for changes that address multiple issues.

• Customize request templates: Use the best practice request form out of the box or customize it to create templates for each type of request to meet the specific needs of your company.
• Evaluation teams: Select appropriate users to evaluate each type of change request and specify the events for which they will receive electronic notification.
• File attachments: Attach unlimited files such as datasheets, drawings, and mark ups to engineering change requests, and standard operating procedures (SOPs) and design specifications to a document change request to fully define or support issues, recommendations, etc.
• Supplier requests: Enable suppliers to initiate, participate in and track requests.
• Customizable tracking codes: Assign company-defined request, deferral, and resolution codes to properly classify and report on engineering change requests.
• Advanced search: Locate requests by searching across numerous attributes including user-defined classification codes, status, participants, and affected items.
• Custom attributes: Configure an unlimited number of custom attributes, make them required or optional entries, and specify default or allowable values to track exactly the information you need on each request.
• Supplier file visibility: Mark any file as private, hiding it from all suppliers, even if they have access to the BOM or the engineering change request.
• Associated items: Associate one or more items with a change request.
• Request and change lifecycle history: Capture the date, status, user, notes, and notified participants every time a request or change order is updated.
• Lifecycle stage visibility: Evaluate the current stage of a request or change through a dynamic display depicting appropriate activities across the entire request lifecycle. View common-sense lifecycle rules to help determine the proper action to perform.
• Unresolved requests: Quickly identify requests that have not been adequately resolved, and view comprehensive details related to associated items and assemblies.
• Flexible ad-hoc evaluation: Add evaluators to change requests as issues or needs arise.